You seem to forget that not every center on Team Canada will receive his usual 18-22 minutes of ice time per game and play the same role he does on his NHL team. Nonetheless, to win the game each center and his line are responsible for winning their match-ups. Guys like Crosby, Toews, and Bergeron do it better than Spezza so I'll take them on my team over a guy who can put up points, but be more of a liability in his own zone. Moreover, centers like Toews and Bergeron can play the PK well and are among the best in the world in winning faceoffs, which is important for a team that wants to play a puck possession game. This is not NHL '14.

To extend your analogy further - saying, "...punch them in the mouth," is like a bar room brawler showing up to an MMA fight and hoping for the one punch knockout. Preparation and roster flexibility are the keys to winning against a myriad of skilled opponents.